Page 75 of Protected from Malice
“They found proof that time. DNA under her fingernails. It should have been enough. Right? You’d think it would be. Butalready, his attorneys were claimingsheattacked him. Storm had this whole story… It was all bullshit. Even if he’d had a trial, it was iffy he’d get the sentence he deserved. But he didn’t go to trial. The fucker ran.”
Understanding dawns in her eyes. “And you went after him.”
“Not right away. I was still in the Army when Mandy died. But when I heard about what happened, the guy had been a fugitive for over a month. No leads. No one even seemed to be looking that hard. It was just… Shit.”
“How long ago?”
“Just about two years. My contract was coming up for renewal, but I couldn’t focus on anything but making that asshole pay for what he’d done. So I separated from the Army. Came back to the States and went after him.”
“And you found him.”
“I did. In this nothing town out in New Mexico. The fucker was dating someone else by then. Hurting her. While I was running surveillance, Isawhim hit her. And she just took it. Just like Mandy did.”
Swallowing hard, I force out the rest—the part that could ruin this thing between me and Eden. “I had to do something. He’d already killed Mandy. This new woman, she could have been next. With all his money… There was a good chance he’d get off. Or get a slap on the wrist. Maybe I should have called the cops on him. Left it up to the police.”
“But there was no guarantee,” Eden says. “He could have run again. Could have paid off the judge. He could have gone on to hurt more women.” She sighs. “Don’t you think I think about that all the time? Even if I’d seen the man who attacked me, it might not have made a difference. A lot of times it doesn’t. Not when it’s a woman’s word against a man with money.”
I wrap my arm around Eden and hug her close. “I know. And I’m so fucking sorry.”
After a few moments of silence, she says quietly, “So you decided to make sure he couldn’t hurt another woman.”
“He’d done it before. I saw his police records. Half a dozen other women from when he was eighteen to thirty-six. Aside from Mandy, they all dropped the charges. He wasn’t going to stop. How could I walk away knowing he could do it again? That I might never find justice for my cousin? So… I killed him. No one will ever tie it to me. I made sure of it.”
“Are you sure? What if?—”
“I’m sure.”
Eden goes quiet for a minute. And I just sit. Waiting to hear my fate.
Then she stands.
An icy hand reaches into my chest and pulls everything out of it.
Shit.
I don’t regret getting vengeance for Mandy. For doling out justice to a killer. But if I’d known back then that it would cost me Eden?—
“Rafe.” Eden sits on my lap. Then she touches my cheek. “I’ve thought about what I’d do if I ever found the man who set the bomb that hurt Indy. And you know what I decided?”
“What?”
“I’d hurt him. I’d want him to suffer just like Indy did.”
“Eden. You don’t have to say that.”
“It’s true.” She brushes her lips across mine. “I would. And I wouldn’t feel bad at all. Not after seeing Indy… No. I wouldn’t feel bad. And the man who killed your cousin? Who hurt all those other women? He didn’t deserve mercy.”
Looking at Eden’s determined expression, a flicker of hope sparks to life again. “You really don’t think I’m a monster for what I did?”
“You? A monster?Never.”
“Eden,” I add, “I have to be honest with you. I haven’t done something like that again. I don’t want to. But under the right circumstances, I would.”
Like if I ever find the man who assaulted Eden.
“Okay.” She nods slowly. “Okay.”
“Okay?”
